Joe Manchin Is Really Sorry About Skipping Votes To Go To A Christmas Party

Over the weekend, newly minted Senator Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) wasn't in Washington while the rest of the Senate was voting on the DREAM Act and the repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. Sure, Manchin ran on the platform that he was going to courageously shoot laws, with guns. Yes, these two measures were important enough to demand a certain amount of statesmanship. And West Virginians are pretty much used to the sight of their late senator, Robert Byrd, showing up for work despite being as old as Methuselah. But Manchin had an important Christmas party to attend! What if that Christmas party didn't make quorum, and Santa Claus skipped West Virginia as a result?

Well, Manchin is now really, really sorry about missing out on casting votes, the job he was elected to do:

"Let me apologize to anybody and everybody within our listening and reading areas. I'm very sorry for missing the two votes," Manchin said during a conference call with reporters Tuesday.

...

"Saturday was our Christmas and Saturday evening was our Christmas dinner. I got up Sunday and came back to Washington to make the votes I had to make," he said.

I guess Jim DeMint is right: the holiday season can just be too distracting for some people. If I sound pretty unsympathetic, however, it's probably because Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) managed to not be too distracted, by the fact that he had an impending prostate cancer surgery, to show up and vote.

Eric Kleefeld at TPM notes that Manchin says he would have voted against both DREAM and the DADT repeal, but thanks to the fact that he observes Christmas a week before the rest of the United States, he won't have to take any responsibility for what he might have done, had he actually done it.

"In the future, I will make any adjustments and all adjustments that need to be made so that it doesn't happen again," Manchin says. Those adjustments include knowing when the Senate is voting on things, and remembering that he is a senator.

RELATED:
Manchin Apologizes For Missing DADT Vote To Attend Family Christmas Party [TPMDC]

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Comments

[steelej]

09:54 PM on 12/23/2010

Tool. Surprise, surpirse. West Virginia might want to secede so that he isn't subjected to all these annoying details.

[tincl]

08:33 PM on 12/23/2010

Not an impressive beginning........ Ooooo...... maybe it is. We'll all remember this non-vote!

[rosiebond007]

08:15 PM on 12/23/2010

Who pays this laggard?

Newly appointed and can't show up for important votes? Dock his pay we need to economize !

[NoSandwiches]

08:13 PM on 12/23/2010

scathing!

[booond]

05:48 PM on 12/23/2010

Stay home, Joe. America's better off without you.

[enigma2]

04:15 PM on 12/23/2010

R I N O..

[enigma2]

04:17 PM on 12/23/2010

Ooops, meant to say he is a D I N O..

[steelej]

09:56 PM on 12/23/2010

Tool will suffice.

[Grant in Calgary]

04:13 PM on 12/23/2010

Pretty odd start for a guy who only has a 2 year term instead of the usual 6.

[madHenry]

03:04 PM on 12/23/2010

How do you spell COWARD? Oh. Never mind.

[parlimentMike]

02:35 PM on 12/23/2010

If the people of WV are willing to support part time representation, they are welcome to it. A Democrat not showing up to stand for principle isn't all that unusual.

[annieooo]

02:05 PM on 12/23/2010

Sounds like we can all take off work with pay to attend our own very important Christmas parties and then, when the boss gets mad, just say "sorry" and keep our jobs with no problem.

[greenwren]

01:48 PM on 12/23/2010

C'mon, people! He was only puttin' the Lord before politics....

Seriously, the man is a coward. Also, is W.Va. in a time warp that they celebrate Xmas a week early?

[NoSandwiches]

08:14 PM on 12/23/2010

He rescheduled Jesus' birthday to fit his own needs....that takes Christmas balls!

[candcje]

09:23 PM on 12/23/2010

Well... he rescheduled the current celebration of Jesus' birthday. But the church rescheduled his actual birthday centuries ago to coincide and overlap the winter solstice. Couldn't allow a little thing like a Pagan celebration to outshine any Christian celebration, so Jesus' birthday (which from the bible stories suggest was late March or early April) was shifted from the spring to the middle of winter so that the church could ensure that they were the start at all times.

But yes, does seem a bit odd that this dude would just declare that he and his family celebrate a week ahead of schedule - during an extremely important Lame Duck session of Congress - his first as a senator...

Surprised, though that he's a Dem given he says he would have voted against both DREAM and DADT. I don't think he's a Dem that I would want representing me...

[candcje]

09:24 PM on 12/23/2010

"were the start at all times."
Oops. I meant STAR at all times.

[Marcus1]

12:52 PM on 12/23/2010

Manchin not fit to be a senator and too much of a coward to stand and be counted. Who votes for these people lacking of moral character anyway?

[booond]

05:49 PM on 12/23/2010

Usually Republicans.

[candcje]

09:25 PM on 12/23/2010

except this article declares him to be a Democrat. Weird.

[enterhere]

12:37 PM on 12/23/2010

Oh the arrogance of these congress folk.

[CANTHATBE]

12:35 PM on 12/23/2010

The only excuse that would work is that he was in a hospital in a coma. What disgrace he showed to Sen. Byrd. Byrd would have rolled in their no matter how bad he felt on such a historic vote.

[Grant in Calgary]

04:13 PM on 12/23/2010

Excellent observation. I remember seeing Senator Byrd wheeled in to the senate to vote on health care. That's worth #200 for you. Happy holidays.

[tincl]

08:35 PM on 12/23/2010

Exactly!!! #201 - and faved!

[asiclilpup]

12:32 PM on 12/23/2010

Manchin is just plain sorry.

[tincl]

08:35 PM on 12/23/2010

Pitiful?